KSHB to offer free broadcast time for candidates

E.W. Scripps Co., which owns KSHB, Channel 41, and eight other TV stations, will offer five minutes of free air time per night to political candidates on its local newscasts during the primary and election seasons. Under the initiative, announced Thursday, candidates for national, state and select local offices will be able to present their messages to the public in an unmediated - though not necessarily unedited - forum. The segments will air during Channel 41's early-evening newscasts for at least 30 total days throughout the primaries and for the 30 days leading up to the general election Nov. 7. Scripps is believed to be the first major station group to offer free air time to political candidates. The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Bill Kennard, has been telling broadcasters to do so. He even hinted at new rules that would require free air time - until certain incumbents in the U.S. Senate threatened to dismantle the FCC. "This commitment represents our core belief that the Scripps stations must, and will, provide leadership in their communities during important elections," said Jim Hart, Scripps senior vice president. KSHB news director Laura Clark said Scripps had left the details up to each station. Although Channel 41 had not fully worked out its plan, Clark said the segments would be taped and produced by her staff, not by the campaigns. Every measure would be taken, however, to present the candidates' messages as completely as possible. "There isn't going be a lot of bells and whistles and charts and graphs," said Clark. "The goal of this is getting the candidate eye to eye with the viewer." For instance, two candidates for the same office could be asked a question, or series of questions, and their responses would air together. To preserve the effect of the candidates' talking directly to voters, KSHB staff would not be seen or heard during the segments. "It's going to feel more like a message vs. a story," said Clark. The Scripps group, rather than individual stations, will approach the major presidential candidates. Ideally the candidates would consent to interviews with each of the nine Scripps stations, but if that is impractical, the stations will air the same interview. Marc Farinella, campaign manager for Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan, said Friday that the governor would take advantage of KSHB's offer. "It's probably not so important for candidates toward the top of the ticket, who would tend to have enough resources to communicate with voters," said Farinella. "It's probably more important to candidates further down the ticket." Channel 41, however, hasn't decided how far down the ticket it is willing to go in extending free air time. KSHB general manager Jim Swinehart said that local races probably would be included "if we feel they're important enough to merit covering them." Hearst-Argyle Television, which owns KMBC, Channel 9, announced earlier this month that it would expand its political coverage in 2000 with two regular features: "Issue Check," with stories that focus on issues rather than the daily horse race; and "Ad Watch/Web Watch," which will monitor the accuracy of candidates' messages. To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit the TV Barn Web site at www.tvbarn.com